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Just below one of the most productive shales in Texas is another treasure trove of crude oil. One layer underneath the Eagle Ford Shale is the Buda limestone formation, a sedimentary rock formation that is said to be twice as thick as the Eagle Ford in some areas.

This could mean that the Buda limestone potentially contains much more crude oil and hydrocarbon than the Eagle Ford. Current studies of the formation have not yet yielded definitive statistics.

Like its neighbor above, the Buda limestone needs to be drilled horizontally. But since the formation is already fractured naturally, it costs much less to drill and complete a well. There would be no need for expensive chemicals and sand mixtures to extract crude oil. And the rig models needed to dig the formation are less costly and more readily available.

Several companies have already tapped into the opportunities present in Buda limestone since the start of the decade. And it could not have come at a better time as the discovery of the abundance of crude oil in Buda came during a period of high oil price, and companies were looking to slash the cost of oil by increasing the supply.

Brian Alfaro is the founder and president of Primera Energy LLC, an oil and gas company headquartered in Texas. The company provides its shareholders with the highest quality, unconventional shale prospects. To read more about the company and the industry, follow this Facebook page.

A combination of inexhaustible reserves and innovative technologies have propelled Texas to the top of the list of energy-producing states. In the U.S., the Lone Star State leads in oil reserves. It produces the highest amount of oil, natural gas, and lignite coal. The state also yields more wind power than any other state.

Even globally, Texas is an energy powerhouse. According to the American Petroleum Institute, the state ranks second in the world for natural gas production and seventh in oil. In 2015, an average of 3.4 million barrels of oil per day was produced, which is almost the same output level of known middle eastern major oil exporters Iran and United Arab Emirates.

As oil and natural gas production from shale has flourished, incomes have been raised, and utility rates were reduced. These have allowed Americans to save an equivalent of $1,200 in real disposable household income.

The boost in energy production has also helped the establishment, reopening, and expansion of businesses in the chemical and manufacturing industries. These have led to an industry output of $37 billion and the creation of 81,000 permanent jobs back in 2013, according to then Governor Rick Perry.

With Texas continuing to fuel the nation’s hydrocarbon production, supplying 20 percent of the U.S. oil output, continuous economic progress, less reliance on foreign oil, and energy independence as a nation is on the horizon.

Primera Energy LLC, an oil and gas industry leader in Texas, is helmed by Brian Alfaro. He has hopes for the nation to be self-sufficient in energy and fuel supply. Learn more about energy by following this Twitter account.

The oil and shale industry has been in decline these last few years, according to market experts. societal concerns on climate change and the potential effects shale gas extraction on the ecosystem have been turning off consumers. This has prompted oil and shale companies to seek alternative means of extracting shale.

One of these methods is hydrofracking, which is an improved form of fracking. The process of hydraulic fracking forces shale rocks to produce gas by injecting a certain area with high amounts of pressure. The process has had unexpected impacts to economies.

There are environmental concerns about the process. Technically speaking, hydrofracking does not emit harmful gas to the environment. Machinery can dig deep into the ground and extract the energy source directly. However, scientists are unsure whether this may weaken the rocks below and cause unforeseen effects. These alleged environmental effects are still to be fully studied but already have shifted the way economies are handling their natural gas perspective.

Hydrofracking is expected to support local economies and lessen reliance on foreign oil. This has political implications. This method of extraction means that each country could technically support itself in case of a global crisis. Government agencies are working closely with local oil and shale companies to ensure that no political affiliations are made in the manufacture or production of shale gas.

Despite hydrofracking being a relatively new process in the oil and shale industry, these two implications are being heavily discussed by those involved in the market. Current forecasts are not clear and determinedly noncommittal.

Stay up-to-date with the latest news and trends in the oil and shale industry by liking this Brian Alfaro’s Facebook page.

People often think of drilling as going straight down through the ground. However, in oil extraction, there is a method more efficient than vertical drilling. Horizontal drilling is the process in which the well changes direction horizontally at a depth. The drilling will start with a vertical process first then turn horizontally at a certain entry point. This technique can reach and collect more energy with fewer wells. It is known to be the best strategy for drilling shale rocks.

Although this type of drilling has a more intricate process, it has been proven by geological research that it yields more benefits than the conventional one. Targets and reservoirs that cannot otherwise be reached through vertical drilling can be tapped through the horizontal method. It can reach natural oil deposits trapped in tight shale formations located more than a mile below the ground.

Another benefit of horizontal drilling is its ability to reach large areas with just a single drilling pad. When this directional drilling is combined with hydraulic fracturing, it can convert unproductive shale rocks into reservoir rocks. There are more benefits such as: installing underground facilities, sealing out-of-control wells, and improving the productivity of wells.

Primera Energy LLC is a company that uses a horizontal drilling process along with other innovative techniques. Brian Alfaro is the President of this company. Visit this page to read more articles about the energy industry.

Methane is the principal component of natural gas, itself a flammable mixture of hydrocarbon compounds that frequently form around coal and petroleum. Natural gas is looking to be a promising transitional fuel. The growth of natural gas power throughout the United States alone has helped it begin the transition away from heavily polluting coal.

Although natural gas is the primary source of combustible methane used in energy production, methane itself is a common byproduct of many industrial and agricultural processes. Much methane itself is produced from flatulence produced by cattle farming and from the decomposition of waste in modern sanitary landfills. Ways of harnessing methane produced elsewhere have been in place. Gas extracted from landfills and agriculture, for instance, have been used domestically for energy production in the same way as natural gas.

On its own, methane is a very potent pollutant, even more so than the exhaust it produces during energy production. In general, environmentalists feel it safer to burn the methane than to let it escape into the atmosphere. Domestic natural gas consumption and flaring have been done in response to this, and the growth of natural gas production offers both an economic solution to natural gas along with a few potential concerns. To keep off methane pollution modern plants have to keep facilities sealed tightly to prevent leaks.

Methane can be burned in conventional steam turbine energy systems as with coal and petroleum. Today, however, plants dedicated to burning natural gas utilize special systems that burn the gas more effectively, producing more power from fuel gas in the process.

Brian Alfaro and Primera Energy are dedicated to minimizing the ecological impact of their oil and gas exploration operations in Texas. Visit this Facebook page for more on his company’s commitment to sound energy production.

Should current oil prices continue to hold sway long into the new year, a gradual reduction of investments in crude oil exploration could be seen, particularly in domestic markets from oil producing nations such as the United States. Although logical on the surface, held back investments are not intelligent moves in the long run, as low prices will rule only the foreseeable future, and not the long term.

Paradoxically, the glut of oil would eventually become a liability should a stable price floor remain elusive. A prolonged drop in price could render much of the domestic oil production unprofitable, undoing much of the progress of the past few years. In time, as the prices rise again, a spike in prices will again manifest as the country once again becomes dependent on petroleum imports for energy. And while investments would eventually return, their production would lag too far behind demand to stabilize prices.

The shrinking of oil investments can lead to long term problems in domestic and global energy security. The 2015 World Oil Outlook predicts that, to prevent massive shortages, the global economy would need around $10 trillion of new investments by 2040.

Thus, to safeguard the continued stability of energy prices, investments in the energy sector must be protected. In the meantime, investors in oil production continue to play the waiting game, rolling back expansion without a price turnaround in sight. These stalwart companies and individuals would find that their risk-taking places them in a unique position of ensuring future energy security as the glut comes to its eventual end.

And while the oil market’s long night continues, demand slowly but surely begins to pick up.

Brian Alfaro leads Primera Energy LLC, a leading petroleum production company with significant interests in the Eagle Ford and Barnett shales in Texas. Visit this website for more updates on the energy sector of the U.S.

North America is home to some of the largest oil fields in the world. The Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas is one of those, which was created about 100 million years ago when a gigantic swathe of forest was buried hundreds of feet beneath the ground (fossil fuels are organic in origin).

The geological formation has permeable rocks which have made it a prime target for oil and gas extraction. The most common method is hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, which uses a combination of water, sand, and some special substances to produce massive pressure inducing release of small pockets of oil and gas inside the rocks.

The Eagle Ford Shale yields both crude oil and natural gas. The oil reserves are estimated at 3 billion barrels, while technically recoverable gas is estimated to be at 50.2 trillion cubic feet. On average, a well can produce 2.36 billion cubic feet of gas. All these make the shale among the most important in Texas and North America as a whole.

Dozens of local and foreign companies tap into this resource to keep petroleum demands in the U.S. relatively manageable. According to a new study, 5,000 new wells could be built by 2020 in the area, a development which could generate 68,000 full-time jobs in the state alone. The economic output could reach billions of dollars.

Brian Alfaro is the founder and president of Primera Energy LLC, a leading hydrocarbon production company with significant operations in the Eagle Ford Shale and Barnett Shale in Texas. More about him and his company can be read here.